War brings out the best in humanity, and the worst. Nowhere is this more evident than in the response of the academic community to the crisis in Eastern Europe. There are two distinct clusters of emails in my inbox. One calling for the scientists and scholars to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the other calling for some reflection first: why now? That is a question worth pondering.
But first let me state a personal position clearly as I have already done in several of my social media postings. The Russian invasion of Ukraine is barbaric in its cruelty.
As I said on Twitter, when you bomb a maternity ward and a kindergarten you have no soul. It is also dangerous in its broader geopolitical consequences. I am scared that we are watching a horror movie in slow motion as we edge towards World War 3, where two powerful nuclear-weapon states (NWS) are potential combatants in the field. The wrong-headed insistence on a no-fly zone over Ukraine could make world war a reality.
In response to the humanitarian crisis in Eastern Europe, I have been overawed by the extraordinary embrace of Ukrainian refugees as they spilt into neighbouring countries such as Poland. Whole families waited for them, offering food and shelter. People were wrapped in warm blankets as they scrambled over the border. Ukrainian children were met by guards of honour and applause as they entered an Italian school. The EU offered residence for three years (work and benefits) and businesses pledged work for the refugees. The UK government offered families $456 (about R6,900) a month to host Ukrainians. This is the best of humanity.
We should condemn as a matter of principle wars against humanity whether in Europe or the Middle East and Africa ... Only then does international solidarity mean anything at all, whether on the cruel battlefield or in the comfort of our homes.
Now about that second cluster of emails. Where was this love and embrace or outrage and damnation when other groups of people were fleeing war in their countries? The Syrian refugees? Afghanistan women? Yemeni children? African refugees on overloaded boats drowning within sight of European borders? Watching Trevor Noah masterfully unpack these questions in a recent episode of The Daily Show, you do not even have to speculate on the obvious.
Europeans are right on hand to explain, among them the prime minister of Bulgaria: “These people are not the refugees we are used to. These people are Europeans. These people are intelligent, they are educated ...” Or listen to Prince William, heir to the British throne, addressing volunteers at a Ukrainian Cultural Centre in London: “For our generation it’s very alien to see this in Europe. We’re all right behind you.” Intelligent. Educated. European. Alien. William clearly missed a module on the history of genocide and world wars in Europe or, for his generation, the ethnic cleansing of the 1990s in the Balkans, where the world witnessed horrific torture, rapes, massacres and concentration camps.
Here is my question to the South Africans in my first cluster of emails, almost all white compatriots. Where was your passion, your anger, your outrage and your aggression (yes, those emails get rough) when the refugees were black, brown and Muslim? When those fleeing terror, but with nowhere to go, were Palestinians in the occupied territories? I did not hear from you and that raises an uncomfortable question, but I will ask it: Is it because they are white like you and share a common European ancestry? Where was your outrage then?
I believe one of the reasons we see such a muted response to the Ukrainian crisis among many black South Africans is because of the racial hypocrisy of some of our white brothers and sisters. That they cannot see, let alone concede, the double standards, makes it worse. Silence is one thing. The open cavorting by prominent members of our ruling party with Russian officials in Cape Town in the middle of the war is sickening; whether it is economic interests in the present or anti-apartheid solidarities from the past, that position too is outrageous.
Needless to say, we should do both: condemn as a matter of principle wars against humanity whether in Europe or the Middle East and Africa. We should embrace the fleeing refugee from the Congo with the same duty of care as we do those from Ukraine. Only then does international solidarity mean anything at all, whether on the cruel battlefield or in the comfort of our homes.
And yet there should be reason for pause to question why we rally behind some causes and not others when the same issues are at stake: the disruption and degradation of human lives because of wars. Until we can look in the mirror and ask those tough questions of ourselves, do not be surprised that when our suffering comes along next time, others with long memories might also equivocate.
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